The Orville: Gently Falling Rain
June 23, 2022 5:54 PM - Season 3, Episode 4 - Subscribe
The crew leads a Union delegation to sign a peace treaty with the Krill.
This is our first look at the Krill homeworld, and there is a brief callback to the greatest of all past characters: Bortus's mustache.
This is our first look at the Krill homeworld, and there is a brief callback to the greatest of all past characters: Bortus's mustache.
Yeah that particular bit didn't work for me either. The only thing I can figure is, we were given a window onto the psyche of the Krill here: Literally, what happened to that couple who procured the abortion is JUST ABOUT AS BAD AS (if not worse than) being stabbed in the gut and then beheaded and your severed head displayed in the public square ... to a Krill. For Krill, perhaps imagination of "what might have been" is just so attenuated compared to an actual sensory experience. OK, now that I've talked myself around to it, this is a great scene, it really shows the impossibility of truly understanding a member of another species or culture.
posted by the antecedent of that pronoun at 6:28 PM on June 23, 2022 [1 favorite]
posted by the antecedent of that pronoun at 6:28 PM on June 23, 2022 [1 favorite]
It took me a minute to realize that the actor in the blue prosthetic was Bruce "Smilin' John Sheridan" Boxleitner.
Also loved the armada of Union ships, they weren't all the same class this time!
posted by fifteen schnitzengruben is my limit at 12:48 AM on June 24, 2022 [3 favorites]
Also loved the armada of Union ships, they weren't all the same class this time!
posted by fifteen schnitzengruben is my limit at 12:48 AM on June 24, 2022 [3 favorites]
we were given a window onto the psyche of the Krill here
I think it's meant to reinforce how religious and rigid their society is . Plus they mentioned how the merchant class drives their economy, so maybe some echos of the US? I don't remember if they've said the Krill are as sexually repressive as conservative USA, but I think even if they don't have our "hide every piece of evidence that I've ever had sex" banging up against "no abortions ever" there's still a lot of other reasons people have them, reasons that they may be conflicted (wanted child but health problem, not opposed to kids but can't afford one, etc) about it, especially with the societal messaging.
It still didn't quite land for me. That particular scene. And I feel like this whole episode actually could have been a solid multi episode or maybe even season long arch if we saw more about the Krill. Have random adventures on the Orville, occasional tie ins to the negotiation, and some storylines on Krill.
I also totally had Babylon 5 flashbacks when the president started talking.
posted by ghost phoneme at 1:41 PM on June 25, 2022
I think it's meant to reinforce how religious and rigid their society is . Plus they mentioned how the merchant class drives their economy, so maybe some echos of the US? I don't remember if they've said the Krill are as sexually repressive as conservative USA, but I think even if they don't have our "hide every piece of evidence that I've ever had sex" banging up against "no abortions ever" there's still a lot of other reasons people have them, reasons that they may be conflicted (wanted child but health problem, not opposed to kids but can't afford one, etc) about it, especially with the societal messaging.
It still didn't quite land for me. That particular scene. And I feel like this whole episode actually could have been a solid multi episode or maybe even season long arch if we saw more about the Krill. Have random adventures on the Orville, occasional tie ins to the negotiation, and some storylines on Krill.
I also totally had Babylon 5 flashbacks when the president started talking.
posted by ghost phoneme at 1:41 PM on June 25, 2022
Goodness the show is sure batting above its weight. It just all seemed so expensive. The Krill makeup is really amazing and I swear they had 15 or 20 actors in it at one time, not to mention the CG crowds. And the space battles were also pretty elaborate.
I also like the writing. This episode seemed very serious and very real. Somebody put a lot of effort into elaborating Krill society in a way that felt very effective.
I agree though that the abortion bit did not work well. Particularly left a bad taste in my mouth considering the news this week. Mostly it just felt tacked on, they didn't need to go there.
posted by Nelson at 9:47 PM on June 28, 2022 [1 favorite]
I also like the writing. This episode seemed very serious and very real. Somebody put a lot of effort into elaborating Krill society in a way that felt very effective.
I agree though that the abortion bit did not work well. Particularly left a bad taste in my mouth considering the news this week. Mostly it just felt tacked on, they didn't need to go there.
posted by Nelson at 9:47 PM on June 28, 2022 [1 favorite]
Is this episode the first time we've seen Ted Danson directly on screen? I feel like we've seen him on a view screen (on screen on screen if you will), but never directly.
posted by Hatashran at 9:40 AM on July 3, 2022 [2 favorites]
posted by Hatashran at 9:40 AM on July 3, 2022 [2 favorites]
Me the first half: Too soon.
Me the second half: Okay, seriously TOO SOON
Moments of levity (not many this outing): Isaac’s mustache. “He had no idea we’ve been drinking”…“I knew you two were drunk.”
posted by General Malaise at 7:24 AM on July 6, 2022
Me the second half: Okay, seriously TOO SOON
Moments of levity (not many this outing): Isaac’s mustache. “He had no idea we’ve been drinking”…“I knew you two were drunk.”
posted by General Malaise at 7:24 AM on July 6, 2022
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I liked that Teleya was clearly a nod to cruel populists without making her transparently a Trump standin. However, I thought that presenting the way the Krill handle abortion was...well, if the point was "people wouldn't have abortions if they knew what the kid would be like, so the Krill are right" that's really the only thing I can think of. It sure didn't seem particularly cruel, and I don't think it was making the argument they wanted to make. (I also question whether most people who have had an abortion would react like that.)
posted by rednikki at 6:15 PM on June 23, 2022 [2 favorites]